Kellogg's Plan to Replace Striking Workers Prompts Response from President Biden

决定罢工并不容易，但是当凯洛格的谷物植物工人离开工作时back on October 5, the decision might have seemed pretty straightforward. Similar strikes from other members of the Bakery, Confectionery, Tobacco Workers and Grain Millers' International Union (BCTGM) atFrito-LayandNabiscohad resulted in new contracts andongoing labor issuesin the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic had seemed to put leverage in the workers' hands.

But over two months later, the dispute is still ongoing — and things appear worse for both sides.

During a December 5 vote, Union members rejected a potential five-year deal. At that point, Kellogg's said they planned to start hiring permanent replacements for the 1,400 striking employees,according toThe Guardian. "While certainly not the result we had hoped for, we must take the necessary steps to ensure business continuity," Chris Hood, president of Kellogg North America, was quoted as saying at the time. "We have an obligation to our customers and consumers to continue to provide the cereals that they know and love."

But just how much people will still love these cereals is coming into question. Beyond the usual calls for boycotts, a social media campaign launchedon Redditasking people to spam Kellogg's online application portal appeared to gain significant traction. Then on Friday, President Bidenissued a statementdirectly addressing the Kellogg's collective bargaining negotiations, saying that he was "deeply troubled by reports of Kellogg's plans to permanently replace striking workers."

"Permanently replacing striking workers is an existential attack on the union and its members' jobs and livelihoods. I have long opposed permanent striker replacements and I strongly support legislation that would ban that practice. And such action undermines the critical role collective bargaining plays in providing workers a voice and the opportunity to improve their lives while contributing fully to their employer's success," Biden continued. "Unions built the middle class of this country. My unyielding support for unions includes support for collective bargaining, and I will aggressively defend both."

When asked to address President Biden's statement, Kellogg's spokesperson Kris Bahner responded with a statement saying, "We agree that this needs to be solved at the bargaining table. Our objective has been — and continues to be — to reach a fair agreement for our people."

“我们已经竭尽全力达成公平的协议，包括在整个谈判过程中向工会提出六个全面的报价，所有这些都包括工资和福利增加，每位员工都在行业领先的薪酬方面提高。”细节。“大多数每小时RTEC员工的平均2020年收入为120,000美元，我们的传统员工会有近36美元/小时的时间。暂定协议是Kellogg和工会之间的一项全面谈判的协议，不包含任何优惠或外卖 - 仅增加 -工资和福利。我们对最终被拒绝感到非常失望。”

Kellogg's did not answer a question asking if the social media campaign to flood them with applications has had any effect on their hiring efforts.